JuicyTalk
Competitive football is back in full swing and the first round of the EFL Cup continued on Friday night.
After York got their first taste of action back in the Football League, Bristol City were also dumped out of the competition earlier in the week.
But Friday night’s action was headlined by Middlesbrough vs Wrexham, two teams who will be aiming for promotion to the Premier League this season.
That was not the only action available for fans to watch ahead of the new domestic campaign, with Wolves hosting Port Vale at Molineux after being relegated, and Wycombe faced Stevenage.
You can catch up with the best of the action right here on 101GreatGoals.
Middlesbrough 1-0 Wrexham
Will Lankshear’s second-half strike proved enough to hand Middlesbrough a hard-fought 1-0 win over Wrexham at the Riverside Stadium, condemning the visitors to their first defeat of the season.
After a quiet opening period with few clear-cut chances, the game came to life after the break as both sides searched for a breakthrough.
Middlesbrough found it on 61 minutes when Sebastian Berhalter rose to head the ball into the path of Lankshear, who kept his composure to send a low finish into the bottom corner.
Wrexham responded positively and almost hit back from a Nathan Broadhead free kick that sailed narrowly over the crossbar.
The visitors piled on the pressure in the closing stages, winning a succession of corners as Middlesbrough were forced onto the back foot. Lewis O’Brien saw a shot blocked before Callum Doyle tested Sol Brynn with a low effort from distance, but the Boro goalkeeper was equal to it.
Morgan Whittaker struck the post on the counter as Middlesbrough threatened a second, and Wrexham’s final attack fizzled out, allowing Middlesbrough to hold on and progress to the second round.
Wycombe 1-2 Stevenage
Stevenage stunned Wycombe as Josh Magennis headed home a 95th-minute winner to seal a 2-1 win at Adams Park.
Alex Revell’s side had taken a deserved lead midway through the first half when Dan Kemp finished from close range after Wycombe failed to deal with a dangerous delivery.
The visitors continued to threaten and almost doubled their advantage before the break, while Filip Marschall produced an excellent save to deny Daniel Harvie’s header at the other end.
Wycombe improved after the restart and eventually found a route back into the contest when Richard Kone fired home just after the hour mark to level the scores.
The hosts pushed for a winner, but Stevenage remained dangerous on the counter and looked the more threatening from set pieces as the game entered stoppage time.
Their persistence paid off in the fifth minute of added time. Phoenix Patterson’s corner caused problems in the Wycombe box, and Magennis rose highest to power a close-range header into the bottom corner, sparking wild celebrations among the travelling supporters.
Wolves 3-0 Port Vale
Wolves made a confident start to their season with a comfortable 3-0 win over Port Vale at Molineux, with goals from Adam Armstrong, Andre and Fer Lopez putting the hosts into control early on.
Armstrong opened the scoring in the 14th minute, finishing coolly from the centre of the box after good approach play, and had already struck the right post three minutes before that in what was an encouraging first-half display from the hosts.
Andre doubled the advantage in the 34th minute, powering home a header from close range after Yerson Mosquera flicked on from a corner, before Lopez added a third just before the interval, slotting left-footed into the bottom corner from a Rodrigo Gomes cutback to put the game well beyond Port Vale’s reach.
The visitors showed some spirit in the second half and were awarded a penalty when Mosquera fouled Mo Faal in the area, but Dan Bentley produced a comfortable save to deny the Port Vale striker from 12 yards and preserve the clean sheet.
